Tropical waves in the northwest Caribbean Sea and the east Atlantic Ocean both are being given at least a 60 percent chance of developing into tropical storms by Friday afternoon, according to the National Hurricane Center.

The wave in the Caribbean, heading northwest at 10-15 mph, could reach the southern Gulf of Mexico by Friday morning.

Computer models show a wide range of possible storm paths, from a westerly course to the Yucatan Peninsula to a northerly path into the central Gulf of Mexico, said Bay News 9 meteorologist Juli Marquez.

The low-pressure system near the Cape Verde Islands in the Atlantic has a 60 percent chance of becoming a tropical storm, the hurricane center said. Even if it did develop, it would not reach land for several days.

The storm could dissipate as it moves west toward dry air and cool water, forecasters said.

Neither the tropical wave in the Caribbean nor the Cape Verde system show signs of organizing into cyclones, said National Hurricane Center spokesman Dennis Feltgen.

"They're nothing that anyone needs to be concerned about right now."

Feltgen noted that between 60 and 70 tropical waves travel west across the Atlantic basin each hurricane season, but only 10 percent develop further.

Contact Lauren Carroll at lcarroll@tampabay.com. Follow her on Twitter @LaurenFCarroll.